The Government was today unveiling new planning rules for building in flood risk areas, which could change the shape of Sussex towns.

It follows extensive consultations with Lewes, East Sussex and West Sussex councils following the October deluge.

The new regulations could seriously affect any future building in Lewes, Uckfield, Pulborough and Selsey, the towns worst hit by the floods.

Ministers are expected to announce a "sequential approach" to planning consent for developments in flood risk areas.

This would favour land with no threat of flooding ahead of low, then medium and finally high-risk areas.

Lindsay Frost, Lewes District Council's director of planning said today: "We are particularly concerned there should not be a knee-jerk reaction which could blight large chunks of Lewes and Newhaven.

"There are several brownfield sites in flood risk areas which we want to see developed.

"We have stressed to the Government we do not want to see areas of Lewes with planning blight which could be a bar to investment."

It is expected planning minister Nick Raynsford will announce that only in exceptional circumstances should developments be allowed on functional flood plains.

In those cases, developers would have to pay for appropriate flood defences.

The Government has come under pressure to boost funding to improve flood defences.